Seasonal colds prevention

OzRich

OzRich

Jedi
While reading “new to smoking :what are the healthy guidelines” http://www.cassiopaea.org/forum/index.php?topic=12392.msg90032#new thread something caught my eye in dant's post
The same phlegm that comes out of the nose/mouth caused from a cold due to a virus
in the sinus or lungs.
Click to expand...

Over the last 2-3 years I have tested something that proved to me that cold is not (or at least not always) caused by virus.

Here is something from the chap who tested it for almost 30 years:

SEASONAL COLDS ARE PREVENTABLE IN SPLIT SECOND AT NO COST

Crazy ? Yes but true.

I figured it out in 1980 and have tested it for nearly 30 years. Colds are seasonal because they are due, not to viruses or bacteria, but to sudden drop in temperature and humidity when we get southerly busters come through.

Air at 0 degrees Celsius even if saturated, contains less than 5 milligrams of water per liter. By the time it reaches the windpipe it will require another 40 milligrams to saturate it at body temperature. That difference has to be supplied instantaneously by the lining of the nose.

The dry air inflames/irritates the linings of the nose and throat making them swell with blood. The pressure then drops in these cavities causing traction pain and even imploded eardrums.

Mucus trapped in these cavities allows to ever/present bacteria to bread and to produce sinusitis and middle ear infections. These are preventable by reducing the inflammation and keeping the nose open by moistening with saliva or tap water and a little salt.

But something much worse will happen if these swollen linings block the nose. The air, bypassing the moistening system of the nose, is then too dry when it reaches the windpipe and thickens up the mucus there, so that the cilia cannot move the mucus up to the larynx for clearance.

The static mucus blocks up the tubes and the chest gets clogged and the work of breathing increases enormously. This will rise the temperature [FEVER] and exhaust the muscles breathing in the chest and tummy. These muscles tire and we start seriously under breathing and then start to ache all over. People call it the flu – but it has nothing to do with viruses and is totally preventable.

How ?

I simply moisten the nostrils with saliva, but using tap water with salt is fine. The tissues are normally bathed in isotonic saline,whereas plain water is actually an irritant to the deeper nasal tissues.

A southerly change in eastern Australia will cause widespread outbreak for sure. I've been told that 85-90% of visits to doctors in winter are connected with colds etc. Imagine the savings to medical bills if you were to follow my example.

I've been coming to my present job 7 days a week for 20 years and, in that time I've had one cold due to extreme stress of the throat from talking and teaching, and no time off due to any other sicknesess. That could be the norm. Imagine the savings for business, industry and schools. Just lick back of the index finger and sniff.

Brian Parker
Click to expand...

About the author:

Brian Parker is former university lecturer in Hebrew, Aramaic and Coptic.
His special interests include: physiology, speech articulatory phonetics and exegesis – evaluation of evidence.
He runs second hand bookshop in town of Katoomba – west of Sydney, Australia.

I quess above method of cold prevention will work not only in eastern AU but wherever there are dry cold winds.

I hope some of you will be able to test it and stop coming cold before it gets bad.
 
This is interesting. Do you have a link to it by chance?
Click to expand...

There is no link.

Brian doesn't own or use computer or TV and hardly uses phone.
He is kind of old fashioned guy totally immersed in his books.
As I said before he runs second hand bookshop, where he can be seen always reading or teaching his students.

What I quoted above (with his permission) can be often picked up by anyone walking by his shop - he puts copies of it
outside his shop to take.

I hardly get sick myself, but last year I had a flu (or flu-like something) with very runny nose - lots of mucus.
At night I kept a glass of salty water beside my bed and just dipped my fingers in it and put few drops just under my nose
(I have moustache which makes it easier :)) - It was stopping mucus formation almost immediately and I could breathe
through my nose, not mouth.

On other occasions I licked my finger and sniffed it every time I felt something forming in my nose (sneezy - like feeling).
Many times I socialized with people with flu (or cold), I was sneezed and coughed on but I was fine.

So I can only assume that it works as Brian explained since he or myself don't have any scientific prove - only experience,
ie everyone around gets sick and I don't.

I guess it doesn't cost anything to test it...
 
I simply moisten the nostrils with saliva, but using tap water with salt is fine. The tissues are normally bathed in isotonic saline,whereas plain water is actually an irritant to the deeper nasal tissues.
Click to expand...

It sounds as though he is on to something. A wide-spread folk remedy for colds here in Egypt is to take a palmful of water, sniff it up the nose, and then expel it through blowing it out again. It isn't the saline solution recommended by Mr Parker, but the people who recommend this swear it works every time.
 
FWIW -- I recently moved into a home that has a fireplace and was anxious to make use of it. In December 2008 when it was cold enough to warrant a fire, I began utilizing it. I promptly came down with a really nasty cold. (The last cold I had was in 2003.) Two months later an article caught my attention (I don't recall where I saw it). It delved into the fact that in the winter months, Grandma may have been right in placing a tea kettle on the stove to boil water and release moisture into the enclosed space as winter months seem to have drier air in many places. And if I recall correctly, the article extrapolated that germs and such may find an ideal environment in drier conditions At the time, I thought about how using the fireplace would have had the effect of making the air drier inside the home environment. Just a casual observation on my part.
 
I can't recall the last time my eardrums imploded from exposure to dry air.

Regular hand washing, and being careful about contact with one's nose, mouth, and eyes seems to work extremely well, as does staying generally healthy and able to fight off infections. Another thing I do, if I do catch something, is to take care to continue to breathe well. When I am congested I tend to breathe less deeply, and I find that if I can avoid that I seem to have less trouble with my lungs after a cold.
 
[quote author=Annette1 today] ...later an article caught my attention (I don't recall where I saw it). It delved into the fact that in the winter months, Grandma may have been right in placing a tea kettle on the stove to boil water and release moisture into the enclosed space as winter months seem to have drier air in many places. And if I recall correctly, the article extrapolated that germs and such may find an ideal environment in drier conditions [/quote]

Yes, I saw this same article and didn't make the connection. Can't remember where I saw it either - a Yahoo! page, perhaps? Funny that the latest evidence points to the fact that cold germs prefer dry conditions; we were always taught the opposite! Although I suppose that would depend on other factors.
 
A pharmacist friend of mine would always recommend lying in the bathtub letting the shower run very hot water to cure a chest or head cold, so that you could breath the steam in. That has since become one of my remedies since it did have a beneficial effect on my illness.
 
bedower said:
[quote author=Annette1 today] ...later an article caught my attention (I don't recall where I saw it). It delved into the fact that in the winter months, Grandma may have been right in placing a tea kettle on the stove to boil water and release moisture into the enclosed space as winter months seem to have drier air in many places. And if I recall correctly, the article extrapolated that germs and such may find an ideal environment in drier conditions
Click to expand...

Yes, I saw this same article and didn't make the connection. Can't remember where I saw it either - a Yahoo! page, perhaps? Funny that the latest evidence points to the fact that cold germs prefer dry conditions; we were always taught the opposite! Although I suppose that would depend on other factors.
[/quote]

It used to be common practice in Poland, where I grew up to have containers (usually clay) on the heaters in winter time, and fill them up with the water, as soon as they were drying out.
 
Annette1 said:
FWIW -- I recently moved into a home that has a fireplace and was anxious to make use of it. In December 2008 when it was cold enough to warrant a fire, I began utilizing it. I promptly came down with a really nasty cold. (The last cold I had was in 2003.) Two months later an article caught my attention (I don't recall where I saw it). It delved into the fact that in the winter months, Grandma may have been right in placing a tea kettle on the stove to boil water and release moisture into the enclosed space as winter months seem to have drier air in many places. And if I recall correctly, the article extrapolated that germs and such may find an ideal environment in drier conditions At the time, I thought about how using the fireplace would have had the effect of making the air drier inside the home environment. Just a casual observation on my part.
Click to expand...

I seem to have had the opposite problem in my house. Too much moisture. It seems that the previous owner did a little too good a job of sealing the exterior of the house with styrofoam insulation and vinyl siding. I was experiencing levels of humidity in the 70% range in the winter months when it was likely around 20% humidity outside. As a result I started to notice the paint pealing and black mold forming in certain wet areas like the bathroom and kitchen sealing. Ventilation was the problem. The house has a hot water boiler attached to a baseboard heating system, so air movement is sparse without the windows open. I remember times feeling like I was suffocating inside of the house. I would feel winded just sitting on the couch and reading a book it was that bad!

To solve this problem, I had an air-exchanger installed, which helped immensely and kept the house dry. I haven't had a problem with black mold since I did this. Just prior to installing this, both my daughters had gone through two bouts of pneumonia. Although I can't say that the lack of ventilation and the signs of mold were what caused this entirely, but I think it's likely that these contributed to their state of ill health.

That said, I think moisture in the air is a good thing. I generally feel healthier and stronger in the summer months when the humidity is higher. However, having adequate ventilation is just as important I think. Older houses didn't seem to have ventilation problems. Contractors weren't as insane about sealing up every little crevice in the house to get the highest "R-value" possible. Some modern homes or even refinished homes (like mine) make me feel like I'm living in a plastic bubble.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top Bottom